1971 Hot Wheels Super Stunt Action Set – Japan

A while back I saw this box picture of an unusual Hot Wheels track set. I’ve never seen one of these before. The lettering tells you this is something exotic.

A search of the internet revealed absolutely nothing about this track. It’s from Japan, so I asked some Japanese friends of mine what the box says.

The little white characters on top say: “Twist loop’s awesome action”.

The large black symbols say: “Super Stunt”.

The large white figures say: “Action Set”.

And the small black writing on the bottom says four things: “Twist loop”/”Giant loop”/”Jump”/Thrill ‘full points’ action set”.

I like the ‘full points’ translation. It’s a Japanese way of saying complete, total or perfect.

So the full transliteration of the box in English would go something like this: ” Awesome twist loop action. Super Stunt Action Set. Twist loop/Giant loop/Jump/Totally thrilling stunt action”. My friends said to me, “Wow! It’s so dramatic!”.

This set is ultra rare. I don’t have one but I have the components to build one. I used a 1971 Sizzlers Stunt Loop Pak…

box art – front.

A 1968 Jump Pak…

box art – front.

And a universal clamp, 3 joiners and 6 pieces of orange track.

So how dramatic is it? Here’s the 4 cars I ran on the track…

l to r: Sky Dome, Prototype H-24, Retro-Active and Super Blitzen.

And here’s a link to my video showing this set in action.

So there you have it. The 1971 Hot Wheels Super Stunt Action Set from Japan.

It’s still fast. Still fun.

Box art – back.

Swooper loop.

Twist loop.

Box art – back.

And here are the instructions for the Sizzlers Stunt Loop Pak.

1970 Hot Wheels Super Curves Race Action Set

In 1968 Mattel released the Hot Wheels Hot Curves Race Action Set.

Today I am building a custom track based on this great set. By adding a 1970 Dual-Lane Rod Runner and a pair of 1970 Dual-Lane Curves, I have come up with the 1970 Super Curves Race Action Set.

I’m using a pair of Dual-Lane Curves, 1 Dual-Lane Rod Runner, 2 red trestles, 1 universal clamp, 1 start gate, 1 finish gate, 28 joiners and 68 feet of orange track. Here’s the assembled layout.

And here are the cars I’m running on this track.

L to R: a yellow ’14 Corvette Stingray, a green ’07 Ford Mustang, a blue 2016 Camaro SS and a red ’15 Dodge Challenger SRT.

Check out my YouTube video showing how the cars did on the Super Curves Race Action Set.

1970 Super Curves Race Action Set.

So there you have it, a custom track, the 1970 Hot Wheels Hot Curves Race Action Set. It’s still fast. Still fun.

1970 Hot Wheels Rod Runner Triple Loop Drag Set

This time I am using a Dual-Lane Rod Runner to power a drag set with 2 sets of triple loops.

You gotta be fast to bet through all these loops. So, I have selected three “fast” cars.

l to r: Fast Fish, Epic Fast, Phastasm and La Fasta.

Here’s my YouTube video of these 4 cars taking on the triple loop drag set.

So there you have it. A custom track, the 1970 Hot Wheels Dual-Lane Rod Runner Triple Loop Drag Set.

It’s still fast. Still fun.

1970 Hot Wheels Speed Shop

How do you keep the “Fastest Metal Cars in the World” speeding along? Take ’em to a Speed Shop for tuning.

For 1968 and 1969 the Speed Shops were Pop-Up Play sets.

1968 Pop Up Speed Shop

1969 Pop Up Speed Shop

But in 1970 Mattel gave us a Speed Shop with tools that we could use to work on our cars.

Side view

Other side view

Back view

Open view

Work bench and diagnostic area.

Fluid and fuels on the pump island.

Speed Shop and contents

Closer view at some of the contents.

An even closer look at the contents.

Speed Shop tag

Here are the instructions for the 1970 Speed Shop.

Instructions – page 1

Instructions – page 2

Instructions – page 3

Instructions – page 4

The unusual part of this set is found in the tools.

The tools: a wheel wrench and a lube gun.

Every instruction set in the early redline era said: Do Not Oil Wheels and Axles!

Yet, here we have the only set that every carried a working lube gun.

Cap on.

Cap off. The fiber wick is saturated with oil. Lubing only requires touching the axles.

So what kind of lube did Mattel put in the lube gun? For that matter, what type of lube did they use at their factories when manufacturing redline vehicles? Today we have dry lubes (eg: Graphite and Teflon) and a variety of wet lubes (including synthetics) to use. But back in the late 60s and early 70s it is  more likely that Mattel used a highly refined white oil (also called mineral oil). Here’s a modern day example of this type of oil.

So, I loaded up the lube gun with this model racing oil and looked for a car to lube. What car? A really slow one of course. Here’s what happens when you lube a poor performing Hot Wheels car.

So there you have it. The 1970 Hot Wheels Speed Shop. Making Hot Wheels still fast. Still fun.

1969 Hot Wheels “The Fast Cars Book”

For 1969, Mattel commissioned a photo book of Hot Wheels in action for kids.

Front Cover of The Fast Cars Book.

The book only cost 29 cents. That was significantly cheaper than the price of a single Hot Wheels car.

The book was published by Golden Press of New York. Jo Anne Wood did the writing and aimed it at young kids. But it’s the photography by Gerry Swart that stands out.

Although there was no 6 lane raceway in 1969…

2017 edition of the 6 Lane Raceway.

…the book starts with that layout.

l to r: Ford J car, Custom Firebird, Splittin’ Image, Deora, red Hot Heap and aqua Hot Heap.

Next, the book takes us into some curves.

Ford J car in the curves.

Twinmill running hot!

Splittin’ Image blasting through a full turn.

Then we see some stunting.

A Custom Camaro and Silhouette in the loop.

Taking the jump.

Here comes the 2 lane Drag Race Action Set from 1968.

The Silhouette beats the Custom Camaro to the flag.

The 1969 Action City play set is the backdrop for the next page.

Action City’s full layout.

A red Hot Heap on an Action City road.

For the Service Station picture, this 1968 Pop Up play set gets used.

Pop Up Service Station – front.

Pop Up Service Station – back.

A Custom Camaro getting full service treatment.

Back to Action City.

Next up, the 1969 Talking Service Center.

For some reason, the blue Splittin’ Image is travelling backwards down the top floor ramp of the Talking Service Center.

Finishing up in Action City.

Last page.

Back cover.

Here’s my YouTube video of this book.

So there you have it. 1969s Hot Wheels “The Fast Cars Book”

Showing Hot Wheels are still fast. Still fun.

1969 Collectors’ Catalog picture of the Action City play set. Copyright Mattel, Inc.

Hot Wheels Tuning Ultra Hots/Hot Ones Cars

The 1970 Hot Wheels Tune-Up Tower is an awesome piece of equipment. Actual testing and tuning of your toy cars…Amazing! However, this does raise one question today…”Which cars can be tuned on the Tune-Up Tower?”

There are 4 groups of Hot Wheels that work with the Tune-Up Tower.

1. Redlines
2. Ultra Hots
3. Hot Ones, and
4. 2002 – 2007 Hot Wheels Collectors’ Neo Classic cars.

What do these 4 groups have in common? They all have thin axles. Thin axles reduce friction at the hub of the spinning tire. This makes the cars faster.

Thick axle Super Stinger from 2015 on the left and a thin axle Custom Mustang from 1968 on the right.

Unfortunately, bending thin axles out of shape is easy, making Tune-Up Tower adjustments all the more important. Thicker axles are much sturdier and tend not to bend. Thick axles also resist manipulation efforts.

The small notch on the tune-up wrench only fits thin axle cars.

The tune-up wrench can’t accommodate thick axles.

Now for some tuning of Ultra Hots and Hot Ones cars. My test track is a Road Trials Set powered by a Super-Charger instead of a Rod Runner.

With the track ready, I’ll start by running two old Ultra Hots.

l to r: green Wind Splitter and purple Quik Trik.

Followed by 2 high mileage Hot Ones.

l to r: White Turbo Mustand and a red Front Runnin’ Fairmont.

Here’s my video for tuning Ultra Hots and Hot Ones cars:

So there you have it. Using the 1970 Tune-Up Tower to service vintage Ultra Hots and Hot Ones cars. Making thin axle vehicles still fast. Still fun.

The theme from the get go? “Go faster…roll farther”. From 1968 Collectors’ catalog. Copyright Mattel, Inc.

Quik Trik on the treadmill.

1970 Hot Wheels Hi-Performance Set

There aren’t a lot of these sets around. I never saw one as a kid. They don’t show up on eBay very often. And until a few years ago, as an adult, I didn’t even know what made up a Hi-Performance Set.

Today, we’re going to fix all that by putting together and running a complete Hi-Performance Set.

Here are the components.

Here’s the layout.

I’ll use a 2005 Ford Mustang to go through the set.

On the second floor of the Tune-Up Tower.

Taking the elevator to the top floor.

Backing out on the third floor.

Checking wheels speed and drift on the Dyno-Meter treadmill.

On the ramp, ready to go.

Lifting the ramp to launch the car.

Heading for the track below.

Taking the first curve.

On the floor and running toward the main track.

Into the bottom of the 2-way Super-Charger.

Blasting out of the Super-Charger.

Charging through the elevated section of the Figure-8 track.

Crossing the bridge and going back to the Super-Charger.

Powering out of the 2-way Super-Charger again.

Speeding past the bottom floor of the Tune-Up Tower.

Running strong, lap after lap.

Here’s my YouTube video of this track in action. I feature 4 redlines from 1969 that represent Mattel’s first in-house-designed fantasy cars.

So there you have it. The 1970 Hot Wheels Hi-Performance Set.

Making Hot Wheels still fast.  Still fun.

1970 Hot Wheels Hi-Performance Set: Instructions.

Here are the instructions for the 1970 Hi-Performance Set.

Full track layout.

So there you have it. The complete instructions for the 1970 Hot Wheels Hi-Performance Set. Making Hot Wheels still fast. Still fun.

1970 Hot Wheels Hi-Performance Set: Introduction

The Tune-Up Tower was packaged three ways in 1970:

in it’s own box,

Tune-Up Tower box art – front. Courtesy eBay

with the Road Trials Set

Box art – front.

and, most prominently, as part of the Hi-Performance Set.

Mattel described this set as a “giant freeway system”. The idea was give your car a tune up, then head out on the busy roadway. And for traffic, 4 new cars came with it. That was more cars than any other set Mattel offered in 1970.

A Custom Corvette and a Custom Volkswagen on the left side. Courtesy eBay.

A Torero and a Lola GT70 on the right side. Courtesy eBay.

Here’s an example of the rest of the contents that came in a Hi-Performance Set.

The Super-Charger and track. Courtesy eBay.

Track and Tune-Up Tower pieces. Courtesy eBay.

Collectors’ catalogue and stickers. Courtesy eBay.

Here’s what the Hi-Performance Set does.

Measure wheel speed and drift.

Adjust axles with the Tune-Up wrench.

Move cars between floors with the elevator.

Use the 2-Way Super Charger to power your cars.

Like all images from the redline era, the box art on this set is amazing.

Box art – side (color)

Box art – side (red, black & white)

Based on the 1968 Alfa Romeo Carabo Concept car, here is Mattel’s 1970 released Carabo being launched out of the Super-Charger.

 

Maserati Mistral on the treadmill, Mercedes Benz 280 SL parked by the 2 hoists, Heavyweight Tow Truck on the launch ramp, Custom Continental Mark III on the elevator and the Custom Police Cruiser heading down to the track.

 

Custom AMX waiting for the elevator to come down and a blue Custom Nomad roaring past the Tune-Up Tower.

Box art – back

Close up of contents list.

Close up of 2-way Super-Charger.

Close up of Tune-Up Tower.

Box art – end.

So there you have it. An introduction for the 1970 Hot Wheels Hi-Performance Set.

Making Hot Wheels still fast. Still fun.

1970 Collectors’ Catalogue image of the Hi-Performance Set.

1970 Hot Wheels Road Trials Set: instructions

Here are the instructions for the Hot Wheels Road Trials Set.

Track layout for the Hi-Performance Set with 2-way Super-Charger.

So there you have it. Instructions for the 1970 Hot Wheels Road Trials Set.

It’s still fast. Still fun.